Bucket operating mechanism



June 18, 1940. J. B. BOTTEN 2,204,883

BUCKET OPERATING MECHANISM Filed Jan. 7, 1939 INVENTOR JOHN B. BOTTENATTORN EYS Patented June 18, 1940 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICEApplication January 7,

3 Claims.

This invention relates to mechanism for operating buckets of theclamshell, orange peel or like types.

One object of the invention is to provide simple and improved mechanismfor operating the bucket in a manner to supply maximum power and toapply it most effectively, to increase digging ability and enable thebucket to work in harder or heavier material, and generally to simplifyand improve bucket operation and control.

A further object of the invention is to provide a self-contained deviceof this general type in which the power plant for opening and closingthe bucket or grapple is carried by and incorporated in or as a part ofthe bucket itself, instead of being mounted on the hoisting machine withmultiple line control extending to the bucket.

A further object of the invention is to provide improved bucketoperating mechanism including a power motor, an operating drum and line,and a clutch connection between the two of suitable form to provideproper manipulation, and more particularly, bucket operating mechanismof the kind described mounted upon and forming part of the bucketitself.

Further objects of the invention are in part obvious and in part willappear more in detail hereinafter.

In the drawing, which represents one suitable embodiment of theinvention, Fig. 1 is an end elevation, showing the bucket closed; Fig. 2is a sectional elevation on approximately the line 2-2, Fig. 1, lookingin the direction of the arrows; Fig. 3 is a sectional plan view on theline 33, Fig. 1, the gas tank and control device being omitted; Fig. 4is a detail sectional elevation on the line 44, Fig. 2; Fig. 5 is adetail view illustrating the control devices for the power motor; andFig. 6 is a diagram illustrating the application of a. bucket, with itscontrol devices, to a hoisting boom.

While the invention may be applied for operation of any form of openingand closing lifting or digging device or bucket, such as a grapple or abucket of the orange peel type, said bucket may be of any form suitablefor the purpose, the form, shape and arrangement of its parts forming nopart of the present invention, except as claimed herein. For purposes ofillustration and in no sense of limitation the invention has been shownapplied to a clamshell bucket, including a head member I, acounterweight member 2, bucket members 3, 4, links 5 by which the bucketmembers are suspended from the head I, and links 6, I crossconnectingthe links 5 and the bucket members 3, 4, to harness the bucket membersfor uniform opening and closing movements, all as generally describedand claimed in Letters Patent N 2,007,704, granted July 9, 1935, toHenry W.

1939, Serial No. 249,734

Botten for Bucket, to which patent reference may be had for a morecomplete description if desirable or necessary.

The operating mechanism for the bucket members is of any suitable formadapted to be carried entirely and supported by the bucket itself, sothat it forms a part thereof, with suitable control devices of flexibleform extending tothe operating or control station on the ground or onthe hoisting machine, according to the way in which the bucket is used.The power motor may be of any suitable form, such as an electric motor,but the drawing shows for the purpose an internal combustion engineconventionally represented at 8 and including a control device, such asthe carburetor 9, supplied from a fuel tank 9a. and having a throttleoperating lever II]. The motor driven shaft I I (Fig. 4) operates aclutch I2 by means of which power is transmitted to any suitable drumand cable winding means connecting the head member I and counterweightmember 2 for operation, such as a Chinese Windlass, generally marked I3,Fig. 2. This Windlass is of well known form embodying a large drum I4and a smaller drum I5, the opposite ends of a hoisting cable I6 beingfastened to the two drums so as to be wound upon one when it is unwoundfrom the other, said cable passing over a loose pulley I! on a travellerI8 provided with rollers I9 by means of which it may move back and forthalong a supporting rail 20 carried by the head member I. As the drivenshaft 2| (Fig. 4), which is attached to the drums of the ChineseWindlass, is rotated in one direction or the other, the cable is paidoff from one drum and onto the other with increase or reduction in theamount of free cable extending from the drums to the loose pulley ll,according to the direction in which shaft 2| is turned. This is theordinary operation of a Chinese Windlass, and by turning shaft 2| orpermitting it to turn in one direction or the other, the counterweight 2is permitted to descend, or may be raised, with relation to the head I,causing the bucket members to open and close in the usual manner.

All parts of the power plant, including the power motor 8, the clutchI2, and the Chinese Windlass drums I4, I5, are mounted upon or in andform a part of the counterweight 2, which includes a heavy box likesheet metal shell or casing 22 to house the several parts, which aresecurely fastened in said housing, and to which shell the bucket members3, 4 are pivotally connected, as will be readily understood.

Clutch I2 may be of any suitable form, but a convenient form for thepurpose is what is known as a hydraulic or liquid clutch, such as isillustrated in the issue of December, 1938, vol. 133, No. 6, pp. 63 to65 inclusive of Popular Science, to which reference may be had for morecomplete description of said clutch if necessary. The clutch isconventionally shown in the drawing as embodying two impellers, to-wit,a driving impeller 23 forming a part of the clutch casing in which shaft2| rotates, said impeller 23 being keyed to rotate with shaft ll. Withinthe casing is a driven impeller 24 mounted to rotate with and upon oneend of the shaft 2|. The two impellers are located opposite to eachother, as shown, and the space within the casing is filled with anysuitable liquid, preferably somewhat viscous, such as a heavy oil,glycerine or the like.

A hydraulic or liquid clutch of this kind has the advantage that itrequires no change speed gears in the transmission line. When the motoror engine rotates at relatively low speed there is enough slippage inthe clutch so that the driven shaft does not turn. That is the conditionat idling speed of the engine, stopping of which is thereby avoided, adesirable factor in the operation of internal combustion engines. As thespeed of the engine is increased the driving liquid establishes more andmore effective driving relation between the impellers 23, drivingimpeller 24 and the driven shaft at increasing speed, until finally, atrelatively high speed, when the acceleration load has been absorbed, thetwo impeller parts may rotate at almost the same speed.

For proper operation of this clutch in the bucket operating mechanismdescribed, any suitable means may be provided for controlling the motor8 to drive it at three speeds, low, intermediate and high. As shown,throttle lever it has con nected thereto the usual tension spring 25,which normally tends to return it to the low speed or idling position.Attached to said arm by a link 26, is the core 27 of a two positionelectro-magnet or solenoid, including coils 255, 28. These coils are incircuit with a source of current 50 and a controller generally indicatedat 33, the operating arm 3: of which may be moved to any of threepositions, marked respectively dig, hold and dump. In the dump positionof the controller both coils 28, 29 are de-energized, the throttle armis in its idling position, and the engine is operating at its lowestspeed. At that speed not only does the clutch l2 slip, but thepermissible slippage is great enough so that the bucket can open ofitself. That is to say, the gravity effect of the counterweight issufiicient to cause it to move downward, thereby turning the ChineseWindlass in the backward direction and rotating the driven impeller 24in the opposite direction from the direction of rotation of the drivingimpeller 23.

By moving the controller to the dig position, coil 29 is energized andthe throttle arm is moved over to its full speed position. The drivenshaft and Chinese Windlass are now driven in the forward direction withsubstantially full power trans mission so as to close the bucket membersand pick up and hold load. when the bucket becomes fully closed fullclutch slip is permitted, as is obvious.

When the controller handle is moved to the intermediate or holdposition, coil 28 alone is energized, which moves the throttle arm tothe intermediate position. In this position the engine operates at aspeed which will just take care of slippage of the clutch when it issubject to the opposing gravity effect of the bucket and any load it maycontain. In other words, in this position of the throttle arm the bucketparts will be held in any given position, the motor counteracting anytendency of the bucket to open, even under full load.

Fig. 6 illustrates application of the bucket to a hoisting mechanismincluding the usual pivoted boom 32. The bucket as a whole is supportedfrom a hoist line 33, one end of which is fastened at 34 to the boom,said line extending around a loose pulley 35 attached to the buckethead, then around a pulley 38 on the boom, and then to the hOiStil'igdrum on the ground or on the hoisting machine. The control wires 37extending between controller 30 and the throttle operating solenoid ofcourse are flexible and will be led to the operating station for thehoisting mechanism. It will be observed that with this arrangement but asingle line 33 is required, so that the hoisting mechanism is of simpleform, and capable of Operation by more or less unskilled operators, ascompared with hoisting mechanism controlled by multiple lines, drums andclutches, and requiring skilled and expensive labor for efiicientcontrol and operation.

If desired, the motor 8, clutch l2 and winding mechanism l3 may beorganized as a unit mounted for convenient attachment to anddisconnection from the bucket, such as by so arranging the housing orshell 22 of the counterweight as to enable said unit to be inserted intothe shell or removed from above, as will be readily understood.

Other advantages of the invention will be apparent to those skilled inthe art.

What I claim is:

1. Apparatus of the class described, comprising a load lifting andcarrying device, including head and counterweight members, load holdingparts operatively connected thereto and arranged to open and close uponrelative motion of said. members, and a power plant for operating saidmembers mounted upon one thereof, said power plant including a windingdrum, a cable extending to the other member, an operating motor, and aliquid clutch between said motor and drum.

2. Apparatus of the class described, comprising a load lifting andcarrying device, including head and counterweight members, load holdingparts operatively connected thereto and arranged to open and close uponrelative motion of said members, and a power plant for operating saidmem bers mounted upon one thereof, said power plant including a windingdrum, a cable extending to the other member, a continuously operatingunidirectional variable speed motor, a liquid clutch between said motorand winding drum, and means for controlling the speed of said motor,whereby to produce bucket opening, closing or holding operations by therelation between clutch slippage and motor speed.

3. Apparatus of the class described, comprising a load lifting andcarrying device, including head and counterweight members, load holdingparts operatively connected thereto and arranged to open and close uponrelative motion oi said members, and a power plant for operating saidmembers mounted upon one thereof, said-power plant including a windingdrum, a cable extending to the other member, an internal combustionengine, and a liquid clutch between said internal combustion engine anddrum, whereby to produce bucket opening, closing or holding operationsby the relation between clutch slippage and the speed of said engine,

JOHN B. BOTTEN.

